*sigh*  When you're stressed or busy or sleep-deprived, the posting rate is through the roof and you feel like you'll never catch up.  But have a few calm days where you have all the time in the world (so much so you're obsessively refreshing the site to see if there's anything new in your games), crickets.

I see "shame Disney killed Star Wars" a lot, typically in reference to the EU being superior...when I think the Star Wars EU is one of, if not the worst, ever committed to fandom. For one thing, they retread the same things far more than the new trilogy does, and has a serious case of Yet Another Superweapon. "It's like the Death Star...but bigger!" "Here's the clone Emperor who can destroy fleets with Force storms!"

Second, it has a problem with taking any given thing from the movies and trying to make it into a thing it shouldn't be. "Tarkin's Disease." Seriously. Instead of Leia's remark about smelling Tarkin's stench being simply a heroic jab flung at the bad guy, it becomes an EU thing where it's a disease that makes people stink. Though nobody else noticed, mentioned, or reacted as though it was anything but the detest that it obviously was.

I enjoyed The Force Awakens for what it was, and I may be in the minority but I really thought The Last Jedi was good Star Wars in the vein of Empire. I'd kill for some Star Wars roleplaying in that era, but I see a lot of disdain for it in favor of the EU that makes it rather difficult, I guess!

This message was deleted by a moderator, as it was against the ToU, at 06:22, Thu 28 Feb 2019.

Ok. So Ive only ever in the entire history of being on rpol (Which is a LONG time) been banned by one GM. And that was an rtj sumbission that turned into an (apparent) misunderstanding that turned into what seemed to be a personal attack for no reason. That was a year ago.

I just clicked on a wanted add to find someone else has banned me. What's odd is that Ive never joined the game and don't recognise the GM at all.

If you have a problem with me then fine but at least tell me what it is. At least we can try to sort it out (I tried my best the last time this happened)

And just in case a mistake is made I'm not the guy who runs Project Starchaser. He got the idea off me (I once ran a game called the voidwalker project that its based on) but I'm not him. I say that because I know some people don't get on with him including someone who I consider a friend (though haven't spoken to for a while which I regret).
This message was last edited by the user at 13:30, Thu 07 Mar 2019.

In reply to Starchaser (msg # 1333):

It might be the same GM, and he's had a name change.

Thank you. Because if that's the case it makes me feel a whole lot better!

Why do I always get these kind of replies:

When suggesting a feature at a site: "You could do this by manually making a lot of different signs or entering a lot of code". As if I didn't realise this! I know I could! I'm suggesting the implementation of a feature that will make it easier to do whatever it was about. *groan*

When asking about a rule interpretation: "It doesn't matter - you can do whatever you want in your game." As if I didn't know! I'm assuming if someone publishes game rules they have playtested the rules, or at least by asking I can find out the best practices developed by the community. If I wanted to invent rules by myself I wouldn't have bought the rules in the first place. *groan*

When asking about some detail about some published setting: "It doesn't matter - you can do whatever you want in your game." - I KNOW! But: I have several times had to improvise details that later caused problems with published material I didn't have access to at the time. If I ask things like "Is Rohlester a kingdom?" it's because I want to know what the canon is, not because I don't realise I can say it is whatever I want it to be. *groan*

In reply to Puckohue (msg # 1336):

My favorite is when trying to hash out the details of a certain problem/rule/whatever in a particular game: "Well, if you were playing [insert system here] you wouldn't have that problem."

It's gotten so bad in the gaming community at large that "Have you tried FATE?" have become a meme.

Look, pharmaceutical manufacturers, if you have an OTC medication that includes a nasal decongestant, it needs to work in all positions.  If I take a pill version of a decongestant, even the stuff I have to sign for, I swear to little apples they only work if I'm standing up and walking around.  As soon as go to, say, sit and read e-mail or surf the net, read, eat, or sleep, my nose slams shut.  Oddly enough, if I have a nasty cold, I usually am not going to feel up for standing up and walking around constantly just so I can breathe.  I want to rest so I can get better.

Now, the nasal spray decongestants work like a damn champ, cranking open both nostrils and keeping them open for the better part of 10-12 hours, but you can't use those for more than a few days (you get dependent on them).  And I'll use them (sparingly) if I know I'll need a good night's sleep or can't be constantly sniffling and snorting over my computer at work one particular day, but good grief, why can't the other "decongestant pills" do more than partially clear one nostril when you're doing anything other than power-walking?

In reply to Isida KepTukari (msg # 1338):

Try taking an NSAID* if you don't have stomach issues.  Sometimes congestion is caused by swelling and the decongestant is doing what it can but it can't unswell tissue.

*NSAID - Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug - Ibuprofen and Naproxen Sodium are the most common versions.  Aspirin is another common one.  Acetaminophen isn't an NSAID.

I was cheerfully swallowing ibuprofen for the sinus pain, but I've been skipping that in favor of the combo cold/flu med pills I got, because that already had a painkiller, you guessed it, acetaminophen.  Time to break out the ibuprofen again!  (It doesn't give me stomach issues, for which favors, much thanks.)

In reply to Isida KepTukari (msg # 1340):

Time to go back to the single ingredient tablets.  You take more pills, but are able to customise what you're taking to your exact symptoms.  Feel better soon!

I think this might be my first vent here. Hm... Anyway.

It's been a rough little while, and it's made my games suffer, but that's just icing on the cake.

My grandmother was hospitalized for cancer a few weeks ago. It was a close thing for a bit, but she's doing doing just fantastic now, though she's still in recovery. I haven't been able to be as available as I'd like, since I've been sick on and off for the whole time, and I don't want to inadvertently cause any complications.

I was thinking we were coming out the other side of things, but my family is apparently right in the middle of a series. My mother was diagnosed with pneumonia a week or so ago after having a nagging cough for a while beforehand. She's been on an inhaled steroid since then, which I was on when I was younger. It's a decently strong stimulant, so she's been awake constantly. That wouldn't be an issue, but she's on a lot of other drugs and is recovering from hip surgery, so her wandering around in the middle of the night isn't exactly an ideal situation.

Then today I get woken up by my highly pissed-off father to find out that my mother, who I had been planning to take to the doctor today, had decided she was going on her own (without bothering to tell anyone), and took my car to do so, then got admitted to the ER, leaving me without a vehicle to go retrieve her with, which left us both stranded for a while. She's back home now, though she's likely to go back in the morning for a consultation with the doctor. Hopefully she'll be less inclined to go on her own this time.

And just to put a cherry on top, I dislocated my ankle last night. It's been a Time.

Sounds horrific. I hope everyone in your family (including you) gets better soon.

Fortunately, you have fortitude and are resilient.

I know it can come across as cold or even disconcerting that my overall attitude about the whole thing is "Generally Annoyed", but that's just who I am. I've got a disabled parent, a significant other, and two apprentices to deal with, and getting upset has never particularly helped with any of it.

My grandmother is on her way to recovery, so she can die stuck under her house like we've always known she was destined to. My mother is back home and underfoot where she belongs. My ankle is also back where it belongs, but it'll be sore for a few more days. Luckily, I found my cane.

Anyway, thanks for the support. I appreciate it. Hopefully I'll be able to get my games back on track before any of them crap out entirely.

I just got done moving a friend and I am just amazed how applestrudling ridiculous the whole thing was. First, this person has known about moving for over a month and does not work, have children, or any other pressing events in their daily life to interfere with pre-moving planning. Showed up to find almost nothing packed and lacking moving supplies-- the dishwasher and fridge/ freezer packed full.

Second, there was a week within which time this friend had to move from one place to another. Initially, moving was happening during the week and was changed to Friday on account of home availability problems-- okay, nothing to be done about that. We were all good to go with moving all the small stuff Friday and Saturday in cars and we were borrowing a trailer for large items on Sunday. Then, moving was happening Sunday and Monday, because there were supposed to be volunteers who were going to show up to move all the heavy things into a van that was being rented for those days. Then, moving suddenly had to happen Friday and Saturday again for large items, because the van rental was scheduled for those two days even though possession didn't happen until 3 PM Friday night and my friend needed to stop moving at noon on Saturday to go accompany one of their other friends to a volunteer event that ran the rest of the day. The items that were moved on Saturday weren't even large, heavy items, but the van was filled with small items that could have been easily tossed in a car completely negating the actual need for the van in the first place. Not to mention, all the heavy items that were left had to be carried by people strong enough to move them-- which were only actually available Saturday for moving. I have no idea what happened to the volunteers.

Now, today being Sunday, our hapless group, now vanless, had the fortune to still procure a small trailer. Somehow one able bodied man and one old dude with a bad back managed to stuff a giant sectional and another full size couch into this thing. Trip number two moved out the remainder of goods that were all dump-packed while that load was being dropped off. Then, once everything was off-loaded, we get told there's a giant bookshelf unit with glass doors we have to go pick up from a seller, which means a call has to go out to someone who is now working that day to leave work to help move this giant thing, because it's just not happening with the group we have already assembled.

Next, we can't even get a hold of the people to pick the thing up from, which means this guy who had to leave work is just waiting for this to happen so they can go back to work and hopefully not get yelled at for leaving. Due to some general grumbling and suggestions we should all just leave and forget this bookshelf, our friend offers to buy us all food while we wait. Mind, we have been moving since 9:30 AM (We were all told to show up at 8:30 AM and had to wait another hour for the trailer), one of the other group members brought us all breakfast out of kindness, and it's now about 2 PM. So far, there's been a few sodas in the fridge and some old, cold pizza, if we're feeling lucky enough to go for it, on offer. We finally manage to pick up the bookshelf and move it and then realize no one knows where it's going and it has to be measured, the room it needs to go in tetris-ed since we've just been dumping half packed boxes everywhere, and finally all the big stuff is in the house. Our group also cleaned up the old place after all the furniture was gone because it was absolutely filthy.

I have never ever encountered such a horribly planned move. I don't even know what to say. I feel like this was just horribly disrespectful of everyone's time and other commitments. When I move, I have everything pre-packed and labeled, even if I'm working full-time or splitting my time between work and classes. I have drinks and snacks for people during the day and they already know I'm buying dinner when we're done, even if it's cheapie pizza. I have a van set up for the day we are moving and we get the whole thing done in a day. Everyone knows when we're starting and where to show up at and I know who can make it and who can't. I'm just absolutely floored! I hope this friend likes their new home, because I'm never again moving them out if they don't!

By the end, did this "friend" have a clue?

At the very least, they said, "Thank you." -_- I kind of imagine not, though. A few people stayed behind after the move was done to help unpack, because if packing was so hard, unpacking was probably not ever going to happen either.

My fruiting eyes!  Why rpol, why?!?!?!
This message was last edited by a moderator, as it was against the ToU, at 04:20, Mon 01 Apr 2019.

^  This is exactly what makes having a custom theme worth it. Get thee over to User Preferences, fiddle with a standard theme slightly, and you will never have to see the fruit salad on April 1 again.

Nah.  I like the black marble defualt too much.  And I'm lazy.  I just like griping three times a year...

Whatever scheme the administrators come up with is alright with me.
This message was last edited by the user at 21:42, Mon 01 Apr 2019.

In reply to Kessa (msg # 1348):

If that person even mildly suggests she might move again, everyone should tell her they are going to be on the other side of the world when it happens.  No need to make it believable, your trip can very obviously be 'planned' for whenever she is moving, even if that changes, she doesn't deserve anything else!  Besides the lack of preparation, she didn't arrange to feed you??  Serve her right if you'd all left at lunch time, and 'forgotten' to come back.  When people help you move you 1) pay them, and/or 2) ply them with food and drink, though it's best if the alcoholic beverages aren't served till everything is done.

Oh, I have no doubt that we will all be conveniently occupied whenever she decides to move in the future. She was quite unhappy with the cost of buying us all food, but I'm sure next time she can reconcile that cost with the cost of paying for her moving labor from a contract agency instead. Even if she had financial issues, which she didn't, she could have at least provided water or something while the moving was happening!